As far as constitutionally protected rights go, the right to bear arms is the only one that is largely infringed upon because of an American adult’s age. Various laws curtailing the Second Amendment rights of 18- to 20-year-olds have been fought over at the state level for the past several years.
Now, one such struggle is taking place in Congress. As Democrats seek to make it illegal for adults under 21 to purchase a common semi-automatic rifle, Republicans in the Senate are trying to do away with the infringement banning 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds from purchasing handguns.
Earlier this week, U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, introduced a measure that would raise the minimum age to buy so-called “assault weapons” and misnamed “high-capacity” ammunition magazines from 18 to 21.
“Everyone in America should be able to live free from the fear of injury or death caused by a firearm,” Sen. Kaine said in a press release announcing the action. “One of many common-sense steps we can take to reduce that risk is limiting young people’s access to assault weapons—just like we already limit their access to handguns.”
As the National Shooting Sports Foundation pointed out in late 2023, there are more Modern Sporting Rifles (NSSF’s term for what antis call “assault weapons”) in circulation than there are Ford F-150s trucks on the road. By any figure, that’s a firearm that’s commonly owned, commonly used and protected “arms” under the Second Amendment.
Despite that fact, the bill lowering the age to 18 is being pushed by a who’s who of gun-ban groups, including March for Our Lives, Giffords, Newtown Action Alliance, Everytown for Gun Safety and Brady, formerly called Handgun Control Inc.
Meanwhile, in the U.S. House of Representatives, Republicans are making a push to recognize the infringed-upon rights of 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds. On February 27, U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Kentucky, reintroduced the Second Amendment for Every Registrable (SAFER) Voter Act, which would lower the age from 21 to 18 for purchasing a handgun from a federal firearms licensee (FFL).
Rep. Massie announced the measure, HR 1643, on Facebook, posting, “I just reintroduced the Second Amendment for Every Registrable Voter Act, HR 1643. The SAFER Voter Act would repeal the federal law that prevents voting-age adults, 18 to 20, from purchasing a handgun from a FFL.”
In a press release about the measure, Rep. Massie asked a poignant question: “Why should a 20-year-old single mom be denied the right to defend herself and her children?”
“18-, 19- and 20-year-olds are considered adults and can vote on important public policy issues,” Rep. Massie continued. “They can also form business contracts, get married and serve in the military. As adults, these Americans should not be deprived of basic constitutional rights.”
One pro-gun rights group to quickly embrace the measure was Gun Owners of America (GOA).
“The current 18 to 20-year-old handgun ban says that the Second Amendment is a second-class right, relegated to the backwaters of the Constitution,” said Aidan Johnson, GOA director of federal affairs. “Gun-grabbers believe that if they can disarm young people in the years prior to turning 21, they can discourage and depress gun ownership for a new generation of Americans. That’s why Rep. Thomas Massie’s SAFER Voter Act is so important because it restores the right of young adults to purchase handguns for self-defense.”
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